Butterfly technique
Butterfly Technique '1. Use the correct arm movement.' The arm movement in butterfly stroke can be broken down into three parts: the pull, the push and the recovery. *Starting with your arms extended above your head (shoulder width apart), pull your hands towards your body in a semicircular motion, palms facing outwards. Remember to keep your elbows higher than your hands. This is the pull. *At the end of the pull, begin pushing your palms backwards through the water, along your sides and past your hips. This is the fastest part of the arm movement and provides the momentum necessary to complete the release. *A good way to remember the pull and push sequence is to imagine making the shape of a large keyhole with your hands underwater. The pull is the wide part of the keyhole at the top, while the push is the narrow part of the keyhole at the bottom. *The last part of the butterfly arm movement is the recovery. Once your hands reach your thighs at the end of the pull, sweep both arms out of the water simultaneously and throw them forwards into the starting position. Your palms should be facing outwards so your thumbs enter the water first, not your pinkies. '2. Master the dolphin kick.' The dolphin kick is the name given to the dolphin-like kick of the legs used in butterfly stroke. Imagine kicking your legs like a dolphin (or a mermaid!) would kick its tail underwater. *With the dolphin kick, both legs move simultaneously, and should be pressed together to avoid a loss of water pressure. *You should kick twice for each stroke of the arms in butterfly stroke. However, both kicks are not exactly the same - there is one small kick and one big kick. *The small kick is performed while you are making the keyhole shape with your arms. This is because your arms are providing forward momentum in addition to your legs, so the kick doesn't need to be as strong. *The big kick is performed during the recovery, when your arms come out of the water. During the recovery you tend to lose momentum, so you need a big kick to keep your body moving forwards. *The most common mistake beginners make when performing the butterfly stroke is to kick in a uniform fashion, without alternating between small and big kicks. '3. Move your body in a wave-like fashion.' It's not just your arms and legs that are required during the butterfly stroke, your whole body needs to get involved! *Practice moving your whole body in a wave-like fashion. Think about the way that a dolphin or mermaid moves in the water -- your body should form an undulating S shape as you swim. *More specifically, when your chest rises your hips should be at their lowest position, and when your chest falls your hips should be at their highest position, with your behind breaking the surface of the water. *If you can get your timing right and manage to synchronize your body movement with your arms and leg strokes, you will find the butterfly much easier to master. You will be able to swim faster and find yourself getting tired less easily. 4. Know when to breathe. Breathing during butterfly stoke can be a little tricky, as it has to be perfectly timed and completed pretty quickly. #*The correct point to take a breath during butterfly stroke is when your arms are just coming out of the water at the beginning of the recovery phase. #*As your arms are about to come out of the water, raise your head until your chin is just above the water and take a breath. Do not turn your head to the left or right - it should be kept straight. #*As your arms recover drop your face back into the water and tuck your chin in so it touches above your chest. This will help you to lift your arms a lot higher. #*Don't breathe on every stroke as this will slow you down and make swimming difficult. Try to limit your breathing to every other stroke, or even less if possible. 5. Put it all together. By combining all of the steps outlined above - the arm stroke, the dolphin kick, the body movement and the correct breathing technique - you will find yourself doing the butterfly stroke! #*However, bear in mind that this is a tough stroke to perfect and it will take time and practice before you are able to synchronize all of these movements and swim thebutterfly stroke correctly. #*It's important to keep working on it though, as a bad butterfly technique can lead to problems in certain muscles and joints, such as the rotatory cuffs in the shoulders. And aside from potentially causing injury, bad technique will also make the butterfly stroke harder to swim. #*If you are really struggling with your technique, consider enlisting the help of a swim coach who can walk you through the stroke in more detail. A coach will also be able to observe you while you swim and pick out any flaws in your technique -- in this way, a knowledgeable outside perspective could be invaluable in helping you to improve your butterfly. BACK